


Super Hero

by EeveeGurl



Category: The Walking Dead & Related Fandoms, The Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Book Store Owner Paul, Brief talk of death, Daryl's a good daddy, Kissing, M/M, Mechanic Daryl, Mention of Child Abuse, Merle tried being a good daddy and good brother, Nerd Paul - Freeform, Song fic, mention of car accidents, mention of drug use
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-21
Updated: 2019-04-21
Packaged: 2020-01-23 05:46:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,987
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18543511
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EeveeGurl/pseuds/EeveeGurl
Summary: inspired by I Want Something Just Like This by The Chainsmokers & Cold Play





	Super Hero

The day CPS brought Merle’s twins to him was both the best and worst day of his life. They were only six months old. He had no idea how to take care of babies, much less two of them. He let the two caseworkers into his small home. It wasn’t much, but it was his. He’d bought it with his own money and renovated with his own two hands. As they sat down, he went into the kitchen to get them both some coffee. He was tempted to get a beer for himself, but he didn’t think that would look good in front of them. 

He sat down across from them, looking down at the car seats in front of him. “So, why are you bringin them t’me?”

Michonne, one of the caseworkers, smiled a bit morosely. “You haven’t been notified by the police?”

“About Merle? Yeah, they came t’me a couple of weeks ago, had his funeral already.” He looked down at the babies again. They would have Merle’s cheeks bones and chin, he could tell already. He just hoped they didn’t lose their hair at an early age as their father had. “What about the mother?” 

He’d hated the woman. Merle had been clean for five years and they’d opened a garage together, then she came along and brought drugs around him. His brother had tried being strong, but then she turned up pregnant and the stress of keeping the garage running and trying to prepare for a baby, then two babies suddenly, had driven him over the edge. The day the twins were born was the happiest day of his life. He’d been sober that day and for the weeks after to take care of them since his girlfriend refused to. 

It wasn’t drugs that took his brother. 

It’d been a car accident. The new father had been on his way to the store to get more formula. The light had turned green and some punk ass teenager in a Ford Ranger ran the red light and smacked right into the driver’s side. Merle had died on impact. Thank god the babies hadn’t been in the truck at the time. For once their mother was watching them. When Sheriff Grimes had brought the news to Daryl, the mechanic’s heart had broken. His brother had been trying so hard to be a good father. 

Fate just wasn’t fair.

Michonne nodded and reached for a manila folder in her briefcase and handed it over to Daryl. He took it and looked it over. “Melinda Parker has been deemed unfit to take care of Darlene and William Dixon. As their godfather and next of kin, custody of the twins is yours. All you have to do is sign the adoption papers and come into court to plead your case. If the judge doesn’t approve, they’ll go into foster care until either you or someone else is worthy of taking care of them.”

Daryl looked over the papers. To be honest, he had the money and space to raise them until they were older and would need their own rooms. “... I-I don’t have cribs, changing tables, diapers, clothes… anything… how am I gonna feed ‘em, dress ‘em..?”

The other caseworker spoke up, smiling in understanding. “The cribs and clothes they have at your brother’s house will be brought here. We’ll give you a gift card to get you started on diapers and formula.” She reached into her own bag and pulled out the gift card. 

The mechanic swallowed thickly. He was 36 and suddenly a father. He picked up the pen Michonne had laid out on the table and signed and initialed wherever she told him to. He closed the folder and handed it back over with the pen. She took it and then pulled out her phone to call the moving company they used to remove toys, clothes, cribs and changing tables from homes. “They’ll be here in a few hours.”

Daryl nodded silently. The little girl’s face scrunched up. Her eyes opened and his breath caught in his eyes. She blinked at him sleepily. Slowly, he reached down to her. It took a moment for him to figure out the car seat but he got it unbuckled and carefully pulled her out of it. She whined for a moment until he laid her against his chest. As she squirmed against his chest, Daryl chuckled. He’d only met them a few times before. Since they were born, he’d been running the garage alone with only two employees. 

Looking at the little girl’s face and into her eyes, he was in love immediately. She had the Dixon steel blue eyes and soft tufts of blonde hair. He chuckled a bit as she smacked her tiny, weak fist into his chest. Darlene. Daryl knew she was named after him. Her brother, William, was named after their grandfather. They hadn’t known him long but Merle said he was a good man. When Daryl was a baby, William Dixon had tried getting custody of them when he found out their father was abusing them, but due to his health, it was rejected. 

Everything was moving so fast. Michonne showed him a few tips on feeding them and showed him how to change them. The movers arrived with the cribs and Daryl showed them which room to put them in. He hadn’t really been using the spare room for anything except a bit of storage which he quickly moved the boxes into the garage. Once everything was settled, the movers left. Michonne gave him a list of doctors to take them to and her own phone number if he needed anything. 

Then, he was alone with them. 

 

Raising them had been hard, especially when they reached two. William was quiet and okay being left with a book or a few toys to play with, but Darlene liked to get into everything. He had to put a child safety lock on every door and every cupboard in the kitchen, even the fridge. He’d hired a nanny to come in every day and help with them, especially while he was at work. He’d never been more thankful for child caretakers. If he wasn’t gay and she wasn’t so young he would marry Beth Greene. She was in college taking child care classes and helped him get the twins potty trained. 

By the time the twins were five, they had their own personalities. Darlene loved comic books while William preferred fairy tales and older classic stories. He was really fucking smart for a five-year-old and Darlene was tall and showing an interest in sports. He’d never been more proud of them. Beth had helped him look for a new house and suggested certain schools she thought they’d do well in. 

So, just before winter hit, Daryl bought and got them moved into a nice, bigger house. With two kids, he wouldn’t have time to renovate, so he’d bought something already renovated and completed. The kids were eager to decorate their rooms, so Daryl took them to a few stores, letting them pick out some paint and posters, some new bed sheets and furniture. It had been pricey, but the garage was doing very well now.

With the twins in school now, Daryl didn’t need a nanny all day, so he let Beth drop down to part-time and only worked when he needed her. Instead of being at the garage all down now, he only worked from 9 to 2. He’d promoted his best mechanic to be a manager to take care of the shop while he was home with the twins. It had become routine for him. Get the twins to school, go to work, pick the twins up and spend the day with them. 

Yes, he could say life was good for him. He felt more love now than he did the 35 years he’d lived before he adopted the twins. He had to admit he was lonely, though. The bed was always cold when he laid in it at night and when he woke up in the morning. He’d never been in a real relationship before. He’d had a few short affairs with some guys he met in bars or at strip clubs. He wanted something real, though. He wanted something that would last.

Now that he had two kids, he wasn’t sure anyone would want him, especially now that he was over forty. He wasn’t quite so handsome anymore. He had some grey hairs in his beard and his hair wasn’t full and fluffy, it was more stringy. He had noticed he was getting lustful looks from single mothers, or married mothers, at the park he took his twins to or at the store. To be honest, the looks made him feel uncomfortable considering he was gay. He tried to ignore them, and reject their advances when they came up to him.

He just wanted a sweet man who was handsome, caring and would love him for who he was, not his adorable children.

 

The second most terrifying and wonderful day of his life was the day he met Paul Rovia. The twins had both gotten A’s on their latest test, so Daryl had taken them out for ice cream and then to the book store so they could pick out new books for their bookshelves. It was a locally owned bookstore Carol had told him about. She’d said it was owned by a very sweet man who loved books and occasionally read to a group of kids. Daryl was intrigued, so he took his twins to the bookstore after ice cream.

The outside of the store looked bland, simply called The Nest. Inside was quite colorful, bookshelves lining wall to wall and a small cafe in the back corner. There were comfortable looking chairs and large bean bags scattered around. Children and adults alike were walking around, standing in front of shelves and reading the books. His twins immediately ran for the children's area and Daryl followed. He wasn’t much of a reader himself, but he was always willing to read to them. 

The children’s corner was a lot more colorful than the rest of the store. The walls had paintings of dragons, knights, fairies and sunken pirate ships. Whoever had painted them was very talented. Daryl could appreciate art even if he didn’t quite understand most masterpieces. He looked around for his twins when he realized he’d been studying the art too long. He found them quickly since they knew better than to wander off too far from their father. 

Darlene was seated in a tiny chair with a large book in her lap and William was off in the corner where a group of kids was gathered and a man with a topknot and wearing a dark green henley and cargo pants was reading a story to them. The mechanic was immediately entranced. The man was smiling and reading in funny voices. His eyes were a color of blue Daryl had never seen before and were so happy and affectionate as he looked on the children. 

He was beautiful. 

His skin looked so smooth. He had only a bit of a beard growing. His hair was a golden brown and looked soft despite being up in a topknot with a few strands hanging in his face. Daryl turned to watch and listen, glancing over his shoulder occasionally to make sure Darlene didn’t wander off as she was apt to do. For once, she was being a good girl and staying in one place. He looked back over at the circle of kids and saw most of them had dispersed except William who had gone up to the man. 

Which was unusual. William was usually very shy and quiet. He didn’t like strangers. No matter where they went he always stuck next to Daryl, usually with a tight fist wrapped in his daddy’s jean pants. As he watched his son now, he couldn’t help feeling a little impressed, but lonely. William never smiled or looked at anyone with such awe except him. He was happy his son was branching out and meeting new people, though he’d prefer it if it weren’t an adult man no matter how beautiful he was, he’d just gotten used to receiving all William’s affections.

William suddenly turned and pointed at Daryl and the man’s beautiful blue eyes looked up at him. His breath caught in his throat. The man stood and walked over to Daryl, his larger hand holding William’s tiny one. Daryl bit his bottom lip. Shit, he must look a mess. He hadn’t showered after work yet, so his jeans were stained with oil and his hair was pulled back since he was too tired to even comb it. At least he’d put deodorant on.   
The man gave him a sweet, warm smile. “Hi, you have a very adorable son.” He spoke softly, still holding William’s hand since the child didn’t seem to want to let go. 

Daryl was reeling from seeing the man up close, hearing his voice and even smelling some kind of lavender and honey scent. He opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out. He was embarrassed and his face flushed. William giggled. “Daddy’s blushing…” He whispered so quietly it almost couldn’t be heard. 

The man chuckled and held out his free hand. “Paul Rovia. I own this bookstore.”

Paul. God, even his name sounded beautiful. Was there anything about this man that wasn’t attractive. Daryl nodded and reached to shake his hand, trying very hard to stop the nervous tremor in his hand. “Daryl Dixon, the wonder twins are mine.” He nodded to Darlene, who was now enthralled by a large book about Spiderman. 

“They’re very cute.” Paul smiled. He looked down at William. “Especially this one here.” He teased the boy. “He really loved Treasure Island, so… I’m going to give it to him.”

Daryl wasn’t surprised. William always loved a good fairytale, especially anything to do with pirates and dragons. “Are ya sure? I can pay fer it…”

The man shook his head. “Nonsense,” he knelt down, handing the book to William, “here you go. It brings such a smile to your face, and that’s all the payment I need.” The boy got such a bright smile on his face, Daryl felt his heart melt. Paul stood back up and turned to Daryl. “Can I get you anything? Coffee?” He didn’t seem bothered by Daryl’s dirty clothes and oil stained arms. 

“Only if y’have some with me…” Shit. Did he say that out loud? The slight dusting of pink on Paul’s cheeks was his only answer. Fuck. Just how much was he going to embarrass himself in front of the man? “Uh… sorry… I meant…. Nah… ‘m good.” He looked down, finding William giving him a look. 

Daryl knew that look all too well. William only ever got that look in his eyes once before. It was when they found a puppy in their backyard, abandoned and still so young. Both his twins got that look in their eyes that they wanted to keep it, and Daryl had been unable to say no. Now, there’s a black and white border collie running around his backyard and getting dog hair all over his bed. 

William was begging to keep Paul.

Daryl wanted to keep him, too. He gave his son an apologetic look before turning his gaze back on Paul. “I don’t really like leavin them alone.”

Paul smiled. “It’s okay. I’ll just go grab us some coffee and we can drink them here.” He wasn’t ready to end their conversation. He didn’t know why, but he really wanted to get to know the man. He was tall, handsome, had the most adorable kids Paul had ever seen and his muscles were begging him to bite them. That would be too weird, though, so the coffee would have to do. He didn’t give Daryl a chance to say no. Letting go of William's hand had been hard, especially when the boy started whining, but he had to go grab the coffee before Daryl escaped. 

He got to the counter only to realize he didn’t know what kind of coffee the man liked. Fuck. He’d have to go with just a regular Americano. That was safe enough, right? He quickly made up two cups and carried them back over to the children’s corner. Daryl was seated on the ground, Darlene in his lap now and William waiting in the same spot for Paul. It was quite adorable how attached the boy was to him. He was used to it. Kids just seemed to gravitate to him. 

William’s bright, happy smile upon seeing him walking back over melted his heart. He smiled back at the boy. “Come on, let’s go sit with your dad.” He walked over to Daryl and handed him one of the cafes paper cups that had their logo on it and then sat down. He blinked when William immediately settled into his lap. Darlene glanced up at him for a moment, gave him a disinterested look, then went back to the comic book she now had. He chuckled softly, used to that expression as well. Daryl smiled a bit and thanked him for the coffee, taking a careful sip of it. 

They must’ve spent two hours in the bookstore. Both kids were happy to just sit and read their books while their father talked with the other man. Paul was quite flirty, but he kept it PG for the sake of the innocent ears. Daryl’s face seemed to have a permanent blush on it now. He was adorable, so Paul really couldn’t help himself. The older man was so easy to talk to. Paul found himself so comfortable around him, which was a bit of a shock to him. His shy, sweet smile made the bookstore owner’s heart skip a beat each time. 

“Daddy, I’m hungry.” Darlene seemed to finally get bored of sitting around and reading. 

Daryl looked at her, then at his phone. “Shit, it’s so late! ‘M sorry, sweetie.” He kissed her dark hair. “Did ya find a book ya wanted?” When she nodded, he gently helped her up, then stood up himself. “We gotta get goin. I need t’get them fed and put t’bed.”

Paul nodded in understanding. William did look very tired, so Daryl just lifted him out of Paul’s lap, giving the younger man an apologetic look. The bookstore owner merely smiled and stood up. He took them back up to the front, told the cashier the books were free. Daryl tried to argue, but Paul chuckled and grabbed some receipt paper and wrote his number down. “Take me on a date and we’ll consider it a fair trade.”

Daryl swallowed thickly as Paul slipped the paper into his back pocket. “‘Kay…” He whispered in awe, watching the man walk away. 

 

Now, six months later, both kids were attached to Paul. After learning Paul knew all about Marvel and DC, Darlene asked him every question she could think of. They read comic books together and he even sometimes brought her back action figures and even bought her a Wonder Woman bed sheet set for her sixth birthday. He’d done the same for William, of course, except it was with dragons.

Daryl was completely in love. No one had ever shown his kids such affection just because they liked them. With all those single mothers at birthday parties and in school events, it was just to get into Daryl’s pants. Paul was different. He genuinely loved and cared about the twins. He was almost a little jealous, but the man paid him the same affection. He loved coming over and cooking dinner for them and was always bringing new books to read them or games for them all to play together. 

As he watched Paul read them a story in Darlene’s room, a book that he said they both would love, he knew he was ready to take their relationship further. Biting his bottom lip for a moment, he left the room and walked down the hall to his own room. He shut the door quietly, then hurried to find a bunch of candles and set them up around the room and lit them up. He went into the bathroom to trim his beard and put on some cologne. He paused when he locked eyes with himself in the mirror. 

He was a 41-year-old man dating someone at least ten years his junior and now he wanted to bed him. How could someone so beautiful and sweet want someone who could barely stay up past eleven some nights? He had grey hairs in his beard and probably in his hair as well. What did Paul find attractive about him? He certainly wasn’t some knight in shining armor or prince charming. He didn’t have any superpowers or special gifts like Spider-Man and Batman. His beautiful boyfriend loves stories about them, even commented about how sexy the actors in their movie counterparts were. 

So why was he with Daryl when he could easily have anyone he wanted?

He sighed and went ahead and put on the cologne. He took a deep breath and went back out to his room. He checked the candles, then left his bedroom and went back to Darlene’s room. He peeked in. Both kids were asleep and Paul was giving him a look as if begging for help. Chuckling, the mechanic walked in and reached down, carefully picking William up into his arms. The boy whined, but turned and cuddled into his father’s broad chest. Paul maneuvered himself out from under Darlene and laid her down. He tucked her in, dropping a kiss to her hair. 

They took William to his room and Daryl tucked the boy in. He grabbed his son’s favorite dragon toy and put it under the blanket with him. He kissed William’s temple and left the room, shutting the door quietly. Paul smiled at him sweetly, hands in the back pockets of his tight jeans. Daryl swallowed thickly. He nodded toward his room and started walking down the hall. He could feel Paul following him, and once they were inside, he shut the door.

Paul looked around the room, taking in the candles and the scent of cologne the mechanic was now wearing. He turned to face the mechanic, blushing a bit and smiling shyly. “... Planning something, Dixon?” He teased. 

Daryl licked his lips and walked up to Paul who was standing at the foot of his bed. “... Yeah, but… can I ask ya somethin?” The book nerd nodded. “... Why d’ya like me? I-I ain’t no one. ‘M just a mechanic with two kids. Ya read about all these heroes and brave men who rescue damsels in distress ‘n save villages from monsters. So… what is it that ya see in me? I’m ten years older than you-”

Paul chuckled softly and reached a finger up to press into Daryl’s lips, getting him to stop talking. “Daryl, I’m not looking for somebody with some superhuman gifts, some superhero, some fairy tale bliss. I just want someone I can turn to, somebody I can kiss.” He lowered his hand to stroke the mechanic’s cheek, his free hand coming up to pet the other cheek. “I want something just like this.” He leaned up and kissed the older man deeply. 

The older man sighed into the kiss, bringing his hands up to Paul’s hips. He held the younger man close. The kiss was sweet and warm, but he could feel the intensity of Paul’s feelings in it. It made him whimper and wrap his arms around the man, sliding his hands up and down his back. He’d never felt anything like this before. Paul felt good and warm. To be honest, Paul was his superhero.


End file.
